


ride on the borders

by cabriesun



Series: shance support week [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Black Paladin Lance (Voltron), Canon Compliant, Fluff, Kinda..., Kuron is Shiro (Voltron)'s Clone, Light Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-01
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-15 03:38:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14151126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cabriesun/pseuds/cabriesun
Summary: Lance is the first one to find out that Shiro (or...Kuron), isn’tShiro. The rest of the team doesn’t believe him, so he ventures out on his own to find Shiro for himself. Because that’s how sure he is that the love of his life is still out there.Or Lance finally gets his chance to pilot the Black Lion. He wishes it was happening under better circumstances, but that didn’t matter. He would go against the entire Galra Empire unarmed if it meant he could save Shiro.





	ride on the borders

**Author's Note:**

> hello there!  
> day five; shance support week!  
> a big ouchie but it's okay!
> 
> thanks to mel for beta-ing!
> 
> this fic took a little extra music power, so here's the playlist i listened to non-stop while writing!
> 
> for day five: _give me love_  
>  [ **far away** or closer than ever]

 

  
  


Lance thinks it was the first night after his return, nuzzled up against Shiro, that he realized something was wrong. The warmth wasn’t right; practically nonexistent. There was something in the air that made him uncomfortable. At the time, he decided to push his concerns to the side, because Shiro was back. Lance already lost him to the stars twice, and he just wanted to have him for a _moment_ without anything to worry about.  
  
He couldn’t ignore it when Shiro told Keith to put the team in harm’s way for the greater good.  
  
He and Shiro had talked about it one night. How no matter how this mission, this _war_ , came to an end, he was determined to make sure the paladins returned to Earth unscathed and safe.  
  
The Shiro that insisted they run blindly into suicide was _not_ the Shiro that sealed his promise to get them back home with a kiss.  
  
Mentioning it to Allura was a move Lance had to work up a lot of courage to do. Throwing their leader (or, “leader”) under the bus was something that could come with consequences if he was wrong. But the cards were piling up and Lance couldn’t handle the uneasiness he felt when Shiro touched him or kissed him goodnight. It wasn’t the same; painfully so.  
  
It didn’t go as well as planned, to his dismay. Allura explained that the stress of war _got_ to people and that Shiro acting a little off didn’t constitute that he was suddenly not who he said he was.  
  
He agreed, indubitably, telling the Altean Princess that she was right, and he was just tired in need of a good rest.  
  
She granted him that, telling him to catch some shut-eye and to not worry about the diplomatic meeting they had scheduled for the evening. He took the excused absence, probably considering it good that _someone_ was sending him to get the sleep he’d been losing day by day.  
  
But Lance could barely shut his eyes let alone drift off, fearful of what was unraveling under his nose. Where was Shiro? What happened after they defeated Zarkon? And how could everyone on this goddamned ship not see the suspicion that Shiro’s greys lead him to believe?  
  
He cried when Shiro yelled at him to stay out of the discussion pertaining to Lotor and his advance within the Galra Empire. Not in front of the team, no, that was a sign of weakness. They all thought he was weak enough. He didn’t need his tears to back up that clause.  
  
There were countless tender nights by Shiro’s side, too many and not enough. It was absurd to believe that the man that sat in the chair of the Black Lion was Shiro. Lance knew his lover better than any of the other paladins, or members of the coalition. Hunk couldn’t hold a candle to Shiro when it came to the proximity of their relationship. Lance and Shiro had found solace in their insecurities, unearthing small ways to build each other up day by day. Watching the courageous leader of Voltron strip his layers and authority down to a sobering, accessible soul in need of healing was something that Lance cherished every day. 

Shiro always talked about how it was hard for him to open up, how if he were to go back to Earth in need of therapy, he wouldn’t be able to do that. In fact, Shiro’s told him that ninety percent of the time he’s fucking paranoid, scared out of his mind.  
  
Lance had been able to see that Shiro’s just like every other person on the ship, that he’s more than their strapping commander or the Galaxy Garrison’s golden student. It's what he would say sparked it. And by 'it', he means his undying love for Takashi Shirogane.  
  
The Takashi Shirogane that Lance didn't feel like he knew anymore.  
  
Deciding to seek out Shiro without any help whatsoever was another decision he had to work up a lot of courage to go through with. That to a greater degree than mentioning his slight concern to Allura. Since then, that concern had swelled into a blazing fire of fear for where his lover could possibly be. He had no idea where to start, or what he would do if he was indeed wrong, but he was sure of three things.  
  
One, he was _not_ wrong. Probably.  
  
Two, he would die before he didn’t try and find him.  
  
And three, being that Shiro would drop everything and do the same for him if the roles were reversed.  
  
It’s what they did. No man left behind, no matter how tremulous or savage the journey.  
  
Lance stood before the Black Lion as if he was on trial, stone cold in his paladin armor. He was unworthy to pilot the mighty beast. He knew this better than anyone, but drastic times call for drastic measures, and Lance had never been more desperate in his life.  
  
With not a single expectation in his mind, he held out a nimble hand and placed it onto the mouth of the lion, transfixed in its hangar. Though he was frightened of what could possibly come, he’d never been so sure of a decision in his life.  
  
“Please,” he whispered, voice rugged as he squeezed his eyes shut, “I know he’s out there somewhere. No one will listen to me, but I know. I _know_ he’s missing, and I _need_ to find him before something goes wrong. Or before I lose him for good…”  
  
Nothing.  
  
“What! No, come on, please!” He begged, looking up at the vessel, “I know I’m not meant to pilot the Black Lion, I know! But this is besides that! I need to save Shiro, and you’re the only one that can find him!”  
  
_Nothing_.  
  
“Come on! Come _on_! I love him! _Please--_ ”  
  
Perhaps it was the affirmation, the confession of his love for the man finally out in the open, that caused the lion to burst into life. The mighty beast lit the dark room as it stood up, opening its mouth and allowing the blue paladin to enter. Or maybe Shiro’s lion realized just how much danger its pilot was in.  
  
Whatever it was, Lance was out of there before any of the other paladins could wake up and realize what he was doing.  
  
It was probably ill-minded of him to leave the rest of the group with the imposter (he was deciding to refer to him as that instead of Shiro). As soon as they found out that Lance had taken the _Black_ Lion, his suspicions would hold merit and something would probably go down.  
  
But the paladins could take care of themselves, and he was too far ahead to look back now. He barely had to touch the controls since they had taken off from the ship. It was almost as if his lion knew _exactly_ where he was but was just waiting for someone to take the wheel, to realize the change in the wind.  
  
So he sat, waiting to arrive at their destination. He marveled in the view of the stars he was granted, the tranquility of being in space in the middle of the night, rather than cuddled up beside a man he didn’t know in the slightest.  
  
Lance felt like he could even fall asleep out here, catch up on the hours he had been missing for the past few weeks. But the anticipation, the slim chance of him reuniting with Shiro, kept him wide awake.  
  
He wasn’t sure how long it had been when the Black Lion finally arrived at an abandoned Galra base. He was sure it’s vacant because of how easy it is to get in. He was drawn to the controls like a moth to a flame, hands clasping down and steering down to a place where he could land safely.  
  
With caution, Lance pried the outer bay doors open with his newly wielded bayard. The sword was already proving the be more efficient than his rifle. Allura said he was meant for greatness, and during the exchange, he didn’t believe it, but maybe _this_ is why the upgrade came at such a time?  
  
The base’s dead silence scared Lance more than if there were a thousand armed soldiers barrelling towards him. It was weird, a place that represented death and disorder suddenly scraping against the lines of peaceful.  
  
There was a tug that was pulling Lance in different directions as he wandered around the base. He’s had hundreds of conversations with Allura about quintessence, and just how much of it existed within living things. To feel yourself being drawn to it like a magnet wasn’t normal, being that everything was alive around them.  
  
This is how Lance knew that Shiro was nearby. In the midst of death and agony that remained in anything remotely related to Galra, there was no life. That life belonged to someone that was fighting to keep it.  
  
He followed the power drawing him in until he stood face to face with a door that he easily sliced apart, watching it fall to the ground and present his lover to him. He was there, chained by his prosthetic hand to the wall. A pale head lifts up to look at the savior coming to rescue him, his features lighting up with relief at the sight of the blue paladin. Even in distress, he still managed to look beautiful.  
  
But after all this time, all this _effort_ , Lance wasn’t going to surrender himself to him unless he _knew_.  
  
“Do you know who I am?” He breathed, unmoving, his feet cemented into the ground.  
  
“Lance. You’re Lance.”  
  
_Oh, that voice._  
  
“Prove it to me. Prove to me that you’re Shiro.”  
  
“The first time I kissed you was after Sendak took over the castle and we were safe. You came out of the healing pod and I couldn’t contain myself. I-I accidentally told you I loved you and I freaked out but you laughed it off, said we’d work towards that.”  
  
It was him. That was their first kiss word for word. That, and the constant tugging in his heart screaming for him to just _get Shiro out_ was enough to convince Lance once and for all.  
  
“I did say that, didn’t I?”  
  
With shaky hands (he was excited, okay?), he sliced the sword down, severing his shackles and allowing him to fall into his arms.  
  
“Oh baby,” he whispered, kissing the side of his head endearingly, “we’re almost there, I swear. Can you hold yourself up?”  
  
Weakly, Shiro nodded and Lance made his next moves specifically to be efficient, quick, and keep Shiro comfortable. He unarmed his bayard, wrapping his arms around Shiro’s torso as the black paladin slung his human arm about Lance’s shoulders.  
  
“Just hang on…” he gave Shiro the promise of safety, “we’re almost to the Black Lion.”  
  
“Black… Lion?”  
  
“I wasn’t the only one that thought something was off,” he responded. Shiro smiles, and Lance spotted it out of the corner of his eye. It was good to see that the Galra hasn’t taken his alluring smile from him.  
  
Just as he said, the two of them were tumbling into the Black Lion as soon as Lance had managed to carry Shiro over the rubble of the busted doorway. The Black Lion, still very much on autopilot, whirred to life and departed the floating base as soon as the two paladins were secure on the ship.  
  
“What happened to you?” Lance queried as he helped Shiro sit in the pilot’s seat of the lion.  
  
“They… They captured me as soon as the Black Lion teleported me away.”  
  
“Why would the Black Lion teleport you into danger?”  
  
“That final battle with Zarkon was killing me. If I hadn’t been whisked away when I was, I’m sure I wouldn’t be alive right now.”  
  
“But who’s to say you would have lived anyway?! There was no one in that base!”  
  
“They were gonna leave me to die…”  
  
Lance’s eyes burned as they widen, anger flooding his systems as he fully processes what he just heard leave Shiro’s lips.  
  
“They left you to _die?!_ ”  
  
“That’s why it was empty…” he whispered hoarsely, unable to meet Lance’s gaze, “they did what they needed to, and they left.”  
  
Blue took a step back from Black, took a deep breath, and reminded himself that there would be time to plot his revenge against the Galra. That there would be time to avenge Shiro.  
  
But for now, he was _here_ , safe not a single enemy within the vicinity of them.  
  
“I’ll never let that happen to you again,” he cupped Shiro’s cheek in his gloved hand, “never.”  
  
“I know,” Shiro nudged his nose against his thumb, “but what about the rest of the team? They cloned me, there’s another Shiro--”  
  
“I know, they know, just…” Lance sighed, smiling sadly, “let us have this. Just for a moment. Can we?”  
  
Shiro looked up, and almost immediately he can see the tears forming, dripping down Lance’s swollen cheeks.  
  
“Of course.”  
  
They kissed, soft and quick, but the blue paladin could still feel the impact of it when they pulled apart. He opted to place himself in Shiro’s lap, asking if it was okay and going through the awkward ‘I’m not crushing you right’ exchange before he cuddled close to him, closing his eyes.  
  
It had been so long since he’d felt safe as a member of Voltron, or as Lance McClain. Shiro’s disappearance had done things to him, and he would willingly admit that part of him depended _heavily_ on Shiro, whether it be his love or his presence alone. It was one of the cons of falling, he supposed. Not being able to live stably without the other person.  
  
But here and now, he could relax. He could melt into Shiro’s embrace. Seak as it was, it was still present as he leaned in to kiss Shiro once more, lips on fire. Shiro’s weak digits reach to caress Lance’s caramel skin, missing the way it rubbed underneath the pads of his fingers.  
  
Here and now, he didn’t need proof that Shiro was real. He didn’t need to worry that this life that they were living, this love that they only wanted to blossom, was a figment of his imagination. It was all here, tangible and undeniably true. There was no cold unfamiliar air, no sickening feeling in his stomach.  
  
He could finally breathe, the oxygen in the cockpit filled with the scent of Shiro.  
  
Here, Lance could sleep.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! poor boys need all the love ever :(
> 
> you can follow my tumblr [sheith-keef](https://sheith-keef.tumblr.com/) here, and the main page for [shiro loves you baby](https://shirolovesyou-baby.tumblr.com/) here.


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